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Understanding emotion dysregulation from infancy to toddlerhood with a multilevel perspective: The buffering effect of maternal sensitivity.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Brown, MA; Gao, MM; Isenhour, J; Shakiba, N; Crowell, SE; Raby, KL; Conradt, E
Published in: Dev Psychopathol
April 29, 2024

Challenges with childhood emotion regulation may have origins in infancy and forecast later social and cognitive developmental delays, academic difficulties, and psychopathology. This study tested whether markers of emotion dysregulation in infancy predict emotion dysregulation in toddlerhood, and whether those associations depended on maternal sensitivity. When children (N = 111) were 7 months, baseline respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), RSA withdrawal, and distress were collected during the Still Face Paradigm (SFP). Mothers' reports of infant regulation and orientation and maternal sensitivity were also collected at that time. Mothers' reports of toddlers' dysregulation were collected at 18 months. A set of hierarchical regressions indicated that low baseline RSA and less change in RSA from baseline to stressor predicted greater dysregulation at 18 months, but only for infants who experienced low maternal sensitivity. Baseline RSA and RSA withdrawal were not significantly associated with later dysregulation for infants with highly sensitive mothers. Infants who exhibited low distress during the SFP and who had lower regulatory and orienting abilities at 7 months had higher dysregulation at 18 months regardless of maternal sensitivity. Altogether, these results suggest that risk for dysregulation in toddlerhood has biobehavioral origins in infancy but may be buffered by sensitive caregiving.

Duke Scholars

Published In

Dev Psychopathol

DOI

EISSN

1469-2198

Publication Date

April 29, 2024

Start / End Page

1 / 14

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • Developmental & Child Psychology
  • 5203 Clinical and health psychology
  • 5202 Biological psychology
  • 5201 Applied and developmental psychology
  • 1702 Cognitive Sciences
  • 1701 Psychology
 

Citation

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ICMJE
MLA
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Brown, M. A., Gao, M. M., Isenhour, J., Shakiba, N., Crowell, S. E., Raby, K. L., & Conradt, E. (2024). Understanding emotion dysregulation from infancy to toddlerhood with a multilevel perspective: The buffering effect of maternal sensitivity. Dev Psychopathol, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579424000774
Brown, Mindy A., Mengyu Miranda Gao, Jennifer Isenhour, Nila Shakiba, Sheila E. Crowell, K Lee Raby, and Elisabeth Conradt. “Understanding emotion dysregulation from infancy to toddlerhood with a multilevel perspective: The buffering effect of maternal sensitivity.Dev Psychopathol, April 29, 2024, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579424000774.
Brown MA, Gao MM, Isenhour J, Shakiba N, Crowell SE, Raby KL, et al. Understanding emotion dysregulation from infancy to toddlerhood with a multilevel perspective: The buffering effect of maternal sensitivity. Dev Psychopathol. 2024 Apr 29;1–14.
Brown, Mindy A., et al. “Understanding emotion dysregulation from infancy to toddlerhood with a multilevel perspective: The buffering effect of maternal sensitivity.Dev Psychopathol, Apr. 2024, pp. 1–14. Pubmed, doi:10.1017/S0954579424000774.
Brown MA, Gao MM, Isenhour J, Shakiba N, Crowell SE, Raby KL, Conradt E. Understanding emotion dysregulation from infancy to toddlerhood with a multilevel perspective: The buffering effect of maternal sensitivity. Dev Psychopathol. 2024 Apr 29;1–14.
Journal cover image

Published In

Dev Psychopathol

DOI

EISSN

1469-2198

Publication Date

April 29, 2024

Start / End Page

1 / 14

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • Developmental & Child Psychology
  • 5203 Clinical and health psychology
  • 5202 Biological psychology
  • 5201 Applied and developmental psychology
  • 1702 Cognitive Sciences
  • 1701 Psychology